“Luck only favours when Right Actions are taken while the Heart is under an Attack!”

The “attack” may be due to a block in the blood vessels called the coronary arteries, (blood vessels supplying nutrition to the Heart. OR it may be due to sudden tightening of a vessel, a condition called vasospasm. OR it may be the final result of years of smoking, which has made the blood vessels stiff and narrow.

But, whatever the reason may be, it can very much cause PERMANENT DAMAGE to the TISSUES OF THE HEART & the ultimate equation can even be “DEATH”.

The “GOOD NEWS” is that : if the blood supply is restored within 60 MINUTES – ONE HOUR, this tissue death can be prevented. Therefore it is very important for each and every one of us to know what to do and where to go in such a situation.

Have you lost a close relative or friend suddenly, after a Heart attack? The person would have complained of “acidity” or some discomfort in the chest. It could have been passed off as “indigestion” and ignored. Finally, he may have collapsed in the middle of the night, rushed to the hospital, only to die even before receiving any treatment.

In fact this is what happens in 1 out of 5 patients!

On the other hand, we also hear about a friend or relative who was uneasy, but decided to go straight to a family physician. The doctor could have realised that the patient was having a Heart attack. He would have given the patient an “Aspirin” tablet to help reduce the block. Then he would have checked the pulse and blood pressure, and if they were normal, he would have also given a “Sorbitrate” tablet to increase the blood circulation. In the meantime, arrangements would have been made for an Ambulance, to rush the patient to a “proper” hospital. By “proper”, we mean that the hospital should have facilities for Angiography, Angioplasty and By Pass surgery. In the Emergency Ward, an ECG, Echocardiography and a blood test would be done. Following the necessary resuscitation protocol, your relative would have been given blood clot dissolving injections and taken for angiography. If required, angioplasty and stenting would be done to open the blocks. (Or the patient would have been advised to consider a By Pass surgery). To the relief of one and all, your relative would have returned to his/her daily routine within one week!

All this was possible, only because the Heart received Blood and Nutrition within the “Golden Hour”.